Fort Stockton Holdings hearings to begin Wednesday

Kathleen ThurberMidland Reporter-Telegram

Published 2:57 pm, Saturday, April 30, 2011

Clayton Williams may finally get an answer.

After numerous delays, the Middle Pecos Groundwater Conservation District board will begin hearings Wednesday to consider whether it will grant Williams' Fort Stockton Holdings a production permit to pump up to 15.45 billion gallons of water per year from his land.

With the smell of smoke from nearby grassfires lingering as a reminder of the dry conditions throughout West Texas, some say the battle over Williams' right to move and sell water only may intensify further.

"Out here in West Texas, that's all you've got," said Lonnie Parks, manager at True Value Hardware in Fort Stockton, describing the importance of water. "It's becoming more valuable than oil."

Regardless of the board's decision following the hearings, which are scheduled for May 4-5 and May 10-11, an appeal could be filed in district court to have the decision reversed.

Officials with Fort Stockton Holdings said they hope that's not necessary. They're ready to move forward. If granted permission to transport the water, there are plans to build pipelines and infrastructure at a cost of up to $375 million so the water can be sold from a water district near Midland International Airport.

"You've got to kick this project off at some point," said Ed McCarthy, an attorney with Fort Stockton Holdings, describing the more than five years they've spent on the issue already. "That's what we're doing."

The Request

Fort Stockton Holdings already has permits to pump up to 47,418.5 acre-feet of water annually from 38 wells in the Edwards-Trinity Plateau aquifer. One acre foot of water is the equivalent of about 325,820 gallons of water. The permits are for irrigation, and the resource historically has been used to water alfalfa plants, McCarthy said, speaking at a recent information session.

Under its request, Fort Stockton Holdings is seeking a permit from the groundwater board to pump up to 47,418 acre feet of water per year for industrial and municipal use, meaning it could be moved and sold. McCarthy said if granted the permit, the company would not use its old permit, which means it would not increase its usage from previous years. Fort Stockton Holdings' land sits near the well fields that supply water to the city.

"While we'd have paper rights to about twice that amount of water, we'd never pump more than that," he said.

Under the new permit, McCarthy said the company also would be among the group required by the district to cut back it's use if ever the district saw that as necessary.

Research shows

Mike Thornhill, president of hydrogeologic consulting firm Thornhill Group Inc., said by looking at the Leon-Belding and Fort Stockton area's past responses to different water use, the company can estimate the effect of Williams' proposal. While it predicts water levels would decline, he said it wouldn't be significant.

"There's plenty of water available," said Thornhill, whose firm worked with R.W. Harden & Associates and LBG-Guyton Associates to create a groundwater flow model for Fort Stockton Holdings. "That's the bottom line."

Having looked at data from the past 70 years, James Beach, vice president for LBG-Guyton's Texas offices, said even if all permits granted were pumped to full capacity levels, the model estimated 2060 water levels would decline by about 35 feet, which is less than the drop seen in the 1970s when pumping was at its height before permits were required.

"The model validates that the groundwater ability is there," he said, explaining the Leon-Belding area's water re-charges.

The city of Fort Stockton and Pecos County are among those opposing Williams' permit request.

City Manager Raul Rodriguez said the city council and staff have heard overwhelmingly from residents during the past two years that they want to continue fighting. He said the city knows the law provides Williams the right to the water underneath his land. But, he said city residents also feel as if they deserve a guarantee that Fort Stockton Holdings' actions won't leave their community without water in the decades to come.

"Easily what they're most concerned about is the water going away," Rodriguez said. "Only Mother Nature knows for sure."

Daniel B. Stephens & Associates Inc. conducted a study for the city, and it indicated that while water levels would drop some, the city's Leon-Belding well fields still will have water.

Speaking earlier this year, Stefan Schuster, Austin operations manager for the firm, said there's plenty of water available in the area. He said the impact of moving water out of the area would be noticeable immediately. Because there's no historical precedent for transporting water elsewhere, he said he would recommend water levels be monitored if the permits are granted.

"Certainly there's plenty of water for the city that's available there," he said, but added, "When you're applying the water to the crops, it's going to percolate back into the groundwater table. Once you move that water for non-irrigation purposes, you would lose that infiltration for supply."

A touchy subject

The question of what will happen to the water has become so contentious that there were talks at one point of Fort Stockton residents boycotting Midland. Williams even considered pursuing a lawsuit against Fort Stockton Mayor Ruben Falcon for libel and slander after public statements made in 2010.

"It just goes to show you the level of how personal this is to the citizens," Rodriguez said.

Things have quieted down a bit since then, residents said last week. But, they said if the topic comes up, which it has frequently amid the continuing drought, Williams' name often is brought up in a negative way.

"Common sense tells you you can't pump that much water out and expect it to be replaced in the desert," said one man, who has lived there since the 1960s.

Williams has said since the beginning that the water is under his private property and is his to sell to communities or companies that may need it, which he predicted will become the case.

"It's not their water, it's mine," he said earlier.

Falcon and the other council members had considered earlier this year entering into a deal with Fort Stockton Holdings that could have brought the city more than $5 million in exchange for its support of the company's permit application. In the end, Falcon said he had to vote with the residents, and they did not support Williams' efforts.

Rodriguez said if Fort Stockton Holdings can guarantee, and agree to parameters in writing, that it will use permits only to the point it doesn't become a detriment to the city, they might be OK with the company's intentions. Even if residents don't support Williams' plan, he said the law may not be on their side.

"We are at a disadvantage for sure because the law favors the land owner," Rodriguez said.